Leaves from the Vine
by Kaneichi-sama
Summary: A long-awaited reunion, a beautiful song, true love's first kiss. After that, no one knows.
1. Reunion

_Hey guys! This is my first story that I've published. It's a Toko short that is in 3rd person limited, from Zuko's point of view as much as possible. If you'd like to hear Leaves from the Vine, go to .com/watch?v=0iCPTmFHxYQ  
>Otherwise, enjoy, and I'd greatly appreciate a review. I'd' love to hear your thoughts. I'll try to get another story out soon.<br>_

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><p><strong>Leaves from the Vine<strong>**, a Toko short story**

"_Leaves from the vine  
>Falling so slow<br>Like fragile, tiny shells  
>Drifting in the foam…"<em>

The memory of accidentally seeing Uncle Iroh singing one evening is ringing in Zuko's mind. It was Iroh's dead son's birthday that day, and he was honoring Lu Ten. Zuko was on a walk to clear his mind after a fight that day when he found his uncle singing, and even crying. Zuko had walked away. He knew his cousin had died in battle, but never had he seen his uncle truly crying. The memory stuck with him.

Zuko was taking a calm sunset walk on the beach behind the palace, thinking about this moment. As he walks, he sees a figure in the distance walking towards him. As the two get closer, he recognizes the person and a smile crosses his face. After a while the figure seems to recognize him as it takes off full speed towards Zuko. He opens his arms as Toph embraces him, knocking him back a bit. This is the first time in a year that they saw each other. Returning the hug, Zuko says, "I missed you."

"I missed you too, princess," Toph replies. "Ever since I returned home after the war, my parents wouldn't stop bugging me!"

"Sorry I couldn't visit, I've been…uh…busy." Zuko feels ashamed, blushing a bit. "So, how'd you get here?"

"Oh, I ran away again. I left a note this time, though," she says with a smile. Zuko chuckles a bit. Toph leaves the embrace and plops down against the vine-covered wall, already starting to pick her toes. Zuko sits down next her and wraps an arm around her. Toph doesn't seem to notice, staring forward blankly, being blind and all. "It's just that my parents are getting even stricter! It's getting to the point where it's worse than before!"

Zuko replies with a "Mh-hm," leaning in slowly without Toph realizing it. She continues, "They're really getting on my nerves! I mean, do they even know when to " when she is interrupted by a warm, soft hand on her cheek, a hand she knows is Zuko's. He turns her head towards his and leans in, landing a kiss softly on her lips. Her lips are warm and soft. Zuko can see Toph blushing. Toph's shock fades away as she closes her eyes and enjoys their first kiss together, returning it. After a while, they break the kiss as they notice leaves from the vines them falling slowly around them. Iroh's song comes back to Zuko as he sees this. He starts humming it quietly, and can tell that Toph likes it. Settled in his arm, she is slowly put to sleep by his calming humming. Zuko, seeing that she's asleep, continues humming. He sofly kisses her on the forehead and eventually drifts off to sleep.


	2. Suprise

Well, the first chapter was never intended to develop into a multi-chapter story, but the ideas were giving me a headache, begging to come out and create another chapter. Also, I decided to tell the story in a different way. Here's now it'll happen: the first chapter is the introduction, told in 3rd person. The other chapters will be in 1st person, taking turns between the perspectives of Zuko, Toph, and possibly other characters. Oh yeah, and I forgot to say, this story takes place a couple years after the war, so Toph is abou 15 or 16 and Zuko is about 20. The Gaang is still together, though, just not with each other as much. Well, enjoy!

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><p><strong>Zuko<strong>

I wake up in my own bed, groggy from sleep. Immediately, the memory of last night comes to mind. How I ended up in my bed, I don't know. Maybe Toph woke up before me and used earthbending to get me there.

Or maybe it was just a dream. I hope not.

I manage to drag myself out of bed and open the door. When I do, the smell of my favorite tea meets my nose, and the sound of soft humming greets my ears. I follow the source and end up in the kitchen. Toph is in there preparing tea while humming my uncle's song. She's dressed in a simple robe, her hair still somewhat in a mess, her feet bare as usual. Suddenly, I realize that a blind girl making tea isn't the best idea. _I think this means that it wasn't a dream._ Toph seems to feel me coming up behind her and she turns around and smiles at me. "Morning, sparky," she says, playfully.

"Hey, Toph. You're making…tea?"

"Yeah, your uncle taught me how once. It's not too hard once you get the feel for it. He also told me that it's your favorite." She poured a cup and handed it to me. I grab the cup and take a sip. Jasmine. I took a seat at the closest table. Toph took a seat next to me and leaned back, a cup of tea in hand and her feet up on the table. She was drinking tea with one hand and picking her toes with the other.

"So…did you…like the kiss?" Damn it, I made it awkward already. I could feel myself starting to blush.

"Uhhhh…yeah…" She was blushing a little too. "It was…nice. It was…"

"Yeah?" I prodded.

"It was…my first." She was blushing intensely, looking away. It seems that she kind of forgot about her tea, as she wasn't drinking it. I looked down at my tea, watching the steam rise from it, trying to come up with something to fill up the silence.

"So, what's going on with the others?" I ask.

She took a sip of her tea. "They're all planning a reunion at Ba Sing Se. Aang is gonna take Appa around the world to get all of us. They'll be here tomorrow." She finishes picking her toes and scratches her head, then lets it fall limp to her side.

I respond with a simple "Hm". I haven't seen the Gaang together for a year and a half. It'll be great to see them all again. I lean back and finish the tea in my cup, placing it on the table in front of me. After another couple minutes of waiting in silence, I ask "Would you like to go for a walk?" I get up and offer my hand to Toph.

Even though we're both still dressed like we just woke up, which we actually did, she grabs my hand and I pull her up. "All right, princess," she says.

We walk, side by side, out the back door, immediately greeted by the sight of the beach. We walk along the shore, the water lapping at our bare feet. We walk, simply enjoying each other's company, when I feel a warm, soft hand grab mine. I look down and Toph, and I see her keep her face forward, squeezing my hand. I squeeze it back reassuringly and we continue forward.

Eventually, she lets go of my hand and holds her arm out in front of me. I stop walking while she takes a few steps forward and stops in an earthbending position. She raises her arms and a bench made of stone rises up from the sand, probably just compressed sand. Toph sits on the bench and pats the empty spot next to her. I sit down, wondering what she has planned. She grabs my hand again and leans against me. Now, I can feel myself starting to sweat a bit. I hope she doesn't notice.

She does. She smiles and says, "Don't be so nervous. I won't bite, sparky." I put my arm around her, as it seems like I should. She looks up at me with that beautiful face I love and whispers, "I really like you. A lot." She puts her hand on my cheek this time.

I lean in, reading her actions. "I really like you too." Our lips are about to meet when we hear a loud roar in the distance. We both look towards the sound and see Appa, flying in towards us. We both run at full speed to our rooms in the palace. Before going into her room, she stops me, turns me around, and kisses me on the lips. Then she turns around and runs into her room. I linger there for a moment, then remember the situation and run to my room. I change into a simple robe and exit my room, seeing that Toph has done the same. We walk out side-by-side and see that Appa has already landed, with Aang steering and nobody in the saddle. Toph is the first one to say anything.

"You're early, twinkletoes."

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><p>And that concludes the second chapter. I wanted to try for a cliffhanger ending, but chapter endings are my Achilles' heel when it comes to writing. Sorry! If I didn't end the chapter here, it would get way too long.<p>

YAY, more than 1,000 words! I think I'm getting better :O

Well, the best thing you can do for me is write a review, and I'll be seeing you with another fanfic or chapter soon!


	3. Flight

Well, here it is. The third chapter. I just had a cup of tea and a can of Mountain Dew Pitch Black, so I'm ready to write. Just remember that I make this up as I go along, so it won't be perfect. Also, I'm pretty bad at trying to portray Aang, so bear with me. Enjoy!

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><p><strong>Zuko<strong>

I can see Toph grinning out of the corner of my eye. "What happened to coming tomorrow?" Toph asks.

Aang had the same type of smile, only wider. "I decided to come a little early." He's looking at both of us, but I can tell that he's focused on Toph. What's he doing? "Besides, I thought the fire lord might miss me," he jokes.

I laugh, humoring him, if anything. "So, where are the others?"

"Katara and Sokka are still at the Southern Water Tribe. They'll be able to get to Ba Sing Se on their own. I stopped at Gaoling first to get Toph, but she wasn't there. I guessed that she ran away again, so I came here." He hops down from Appa, the lemur following him and landing on his shoulder. He runs to give Toph a hug, then he gives me a hug. "So, are we gonna go or what?" His voice cracks on the "what", and Toph and I chuckle.

"You ready, Toph?" I look at her. She nods and uses an earth pillar to boost herself up. I jump up and climb into the saddle next to her. Aang hops onto the bison's head and says, "Yip yip," and the bison takes off.

After a while of silence, Toph asks, "So, are we picking up Suki, too?"

"Suki is going with Katara and Sokka," Aang answers.

"Cool," I say. I rub the back of my neck, not liking the awkward silence that hangs in the air.

Eventually darkness comes, and Aang says, "You guys can go ahead and sleep, I'm not tired." Nevertheless, he's the first to fall asleep, leaning back on the bison's head. I hope Appa knows where he's going.

Toph rests her head on my shoulder and looks up at me. "Hey sparky, can you teach me the words to that song?"

I know that she's talking about Leaves from the Vine. I look down at her and smile. "You know I'm not a very good singer." Nevertheless, I start singing softly:

"Leaves from the vine  
>Falling so slow<br>Like fragile, tiny shells  
>Drifting in the foam.<br>Little soldier boy  
>Come marching home<br>Brave soldier boy  
>Comes marching home."<p>

After hearing the song, Toph asks me to sing it again. I do, and she falls asleep halfway through, leaning against me. I close my eyes and drift to sleep.

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><p>Finally, I finished the third chapter! Sorry it took so long, I had three parties in a row, so I couldn't write during that period of time. Sorry this chapter's so short, I have writers block right now, and I think I can feel a headache forming. Maybe a cup of tea will fix things. I already have the idea for the next chapter. It's gonna be a short one, but it'll be important. Probably.<p>

I'd love to hear your thoughts in a review, and I'll be back with another story or chapter real soon.


	4. Dream

Here it is! The fourth chapter! I'm surprised I made it this far, considering the fact that the first chapter was meant to be a one-shot! Thanks for all your support so far, it's what motivates me to keep going. Well, enjoy!

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><p><strong>Zuko<strong>

"_I'll pay you double to stop!" I try to reason with Combustion Man, but it's useless. I'm thrown almost to my death, but I climb back up. He continues his assault. I throw myself in front of one of the shots, using fire to protect myself, and am blasted down to the others, somehow unharmed._

_I get up and shoot fire from my fist, but Combustion Man's blast pierces it and blows up yet another pillar. The power from the blast knocks us all down. I hear Toph yell, "We need to get to another platform, this one's going down!" We all get up and run to the next platform. I swipe Toph off her feet and carry her there. "What the heck are you doing, sparky?" I ignore her question and run as fast as I can._

_We're almost there when the hanging temple that we were on breaks from the cliff and plummets to its demise. Suddenly, another explosion shakes the tunnel we're taking to another temple and Toph falls out of my hands. She falls through the hole created by the explosion and grabs the edge, hanging on with her life. I grab her hand and try to pull her up, but she starts slipping. "Hang on," I shout._

"_I'm…trying!" she responds. Then another explosion hits and we both plummet to the bottom, falling quickly. She is screaming loudly, but I'm silent. Instead, my mind is racing faster than my heart. _I'll never get to marry her; I'll never get to even tell her how I feel…why must fate be so cruel? Why? WHY? _Suddenly, a blur swoops down and rescues Toph. It flies back up, and I can see that it's Aang. I can feel time slowing down. Aang whispers something in Toph's ear. He moves to her cheek and kisses her there. He looks down at me falling and gives me a cruel grin, like he's happy I'll be dead._

_Looks like he just wanted Toph to himself. That bas—_

My eyes snap open suddenly. Memory floods my mind, and I realize that I just had a nightmare. I look around and I see that I'm the last one to wake up. Toph and Aang were probably talking for a while, and are in the middle of a conversation. I rub my eyes and the back of my neck, and Toph sees that I'm awake. "Morning, lazybones. It looks like it's already noon. We were worried something was wrong with you," she says. Aang turned his head and smiled. I just noticed that he had some peach fuzz growing in on his upper lip.

"I'm fine," I replied.

Aang adds in, "You didn't look like you were sleeping very well. Nightmare?"

I nod in response, then remembering that Toph can't see me, I say, "Yeah." Suddenly, Toph throws some food at me and it hits my head. "Ow! What's that for?"

"It's food, dummy. You eat it," She responded.

"I know what it is, why'd you throw it at me?"

"So you can eat it."

"Yeah, thanks a lot." I pick up an apple and take a bit out of it. The juices flow into my mouth and down my throat.

Aang says, "Sorry I didn't have more, I didn't want our tip to Ba Sing Se interrupted. We might be delayed as is."

"You know, with our luck, we'll probably be delayed anyway," Toph interrupts.

Aang and I both say, "Good point." We all finish off our food and I look over the edge of the saddle. Looks like we're still flying over Fire Nation territory. Then, I see a burst of flame light a few trees. Odd. Then more and more bursts of flames light more trees. I shout, "Aang, down there! Fly down, I want to see what's going on!" We land near the burnt area and all three of us jump down. We hear shouts and clashes of metal. "Sounds like a fight," I say. We run to the area and see three Fire Nation soldiers fighting off five teenagers in rags. Three of the teenagers can firebend, and it seems that none of the soldiers can.

By the time we get there, two of the soldiers are lying on the ground. One of the teenagers sees us and flees, the others following him. Aang and I check the soldiers on the ground. "Dead," we confirm. I go to the third man.

"They call themselves the Loyalists," he stuttered. "They fight for the old ways of the Fire Nation, for Ozai himself. They're insane! Five teenagers plan to take over the entire Fire Nation. They saw us soldiers and attacked us."

We stood in silence for a while. Eventually, Aang said, "Someone needs to bring them down.

"I'll go."

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><p>All right, I think that's a good ending for the chapter. Did you like it? I was going to apologize for something, but I forgot what :P. I decided that if I was going to make a fanfic, it wouldn't hurt to add in my own characters. Now, I can see this story going further.<p>

I was bored and thought that giving you guys a bit of an image for the Loyalists, so I used a scene maker to create just that. It's not exact, but I thought it was still pretty cool. Here's the deviantart URL: [ .com/art/The-Loyalists-224598055] (copy the stuff in the brackets and delete the space)

Reviews are greatly appreciated, and I'll see you with another fanfic or chapter real soon.


	5. Loyalists

So, I finally have the 5th chapter out. I'm extremely sorry that I haven't uploaded anything in almost 3 weeks. I went through a mission trip and summer camp, and after that it just lost its priority in my mind. But it's back where it should be, and I'm writing again! Feels good. Again, sorry. This is the first chapter from Toph's point of view. Well, I hope you enjoy.

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><p><strong>Toph<strong>

"No!" I shouted.

I could tell Twinkletoes and Sparky are shocked for a moment, because they both feel surprised. "Why not?" Aang asks me sternly.

I look up at Aang. "Because, they'll realize who you are and try to kill you. What other bald kids with arrows on their heads and airbender clothes are running around with a staff?"

"Toph's right," I hear Zuko add in. "We're already wearing Fire Nation clothes, so we can probably blend in easier. Besides, neither of us can steer Appa. Go find the others and tell them about this."

Twinkletoes nods and leaves the ground, probably mounting Appa. I hear his load roar and feel him take off the ground. Zuko looks down at me and smiles. His heartbeat is faster than usual. He takes something out of his pocket and puts it on his head. "What's that?" I ask.

"It's a bandana. I'm using it to cover my scar. Ready?" He offers his hand, and I grab it. We go in the direction of the "Loyalists", hoping to find them.

After about a half-hour, we find their camp. Sparky lets go of my hand and steps forward. I can feel the group staring at us. "My name is Lee," He begins, "And this is…Lien.

I step forward and he puts a hand on my shoulder. "We heard about you," I finish, "and we wanted to join you. You're the Loyalists, right?"

One of them, a bit taller than me and probably my age, speaks up. "I like these two." He sounds a lot like Jet. "We should keep 'em. What do you guys think?" His group responds positively, and he walks forward to greet us, shaking our hands. He seems to linger on mine. "Well, I'm Jian, and these are my guys." He gestures to the people at the camp and they come up to shake our hands.

A polite girl comes first. "Pleasure to meet you, my name is Yi."

Another female; this one sounds shy. "Hi, I'm Ling."

An eccentric girl comes up next. "Hey, name's Yun."

A silent male comes up to us. "His name is Bo," Jian says. "He doesn't like to talk much. Well, you've met the gang. What can you two do, anyway?"

Sparky responds, "I'm great with dual swords." I can tell he doesn't want to take the risk of telling them he can firebend.

"And I can fight with knifes pretty well." Zuko looks down at me, questioning me with his expression. He knows I'm lying. I'm not very good at it. He turns back to Jian and nods.

"Well, we've been through a lot lately, so we were about to call it a day. Lien, you can go in the big tent with the girls," Jian says. "Lee, I'm sorry that we don't have an extra sleeping bag for you."

Zuko puts up a hand. "It's all right; I've slept on the ground plenty of times." He and the guys go to the right and sit down. I follow the girls into the tent.

Once inside, the other three sit down. I take a seat next to the shy one, facing the other two.

Immediately, I'm met by three pairs of eyes looking at me. I sit there awkwardly, until I ask, "What?"

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><p>And that's the end of the fifth chapter. The next two chapters might be kinda short, but as always I'll shoot for the best length possible. I decided to end this chapter here, as I wanted to get this submitted today, and it was a great place to do so.<p>

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Reviews are greatly appreciated, and I'll see you with another fanfic or chapter real soon.


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